Venue: TTD Information Center, Venkatanarayana Road, T. Nagar, Chennai
Date: 23 Jan 2007
Vocal: Vid. Papanasam Ashok Ramani
Violin: Vid. Lalgudi G. Vijayalakshmi
Mrudangam: Vid. Umayalpuram K. Sivaraman (UKS)
Morsing: Vid. Srirangam Kannan
Konnakkol: Vid. Konerirajapuram Varadarajan
List of songs:
1) nI inda mAyam (varnam) – danyAsi – Adi – pApanAsam sivan
2) jaya jaya – nATTai – kanDa chApu – purandaradAsa (S)
3) teratIyagarAdA – gowLipantu – Adi – thyAgarAja
4) venkaTaramaNA – latAngi – rUpakam – pApanAsam sivan (ANS)
5) gAnamUrtE – gAnamUrti – Adi – thyAgarAja
6) hechariga – yadukulakAmbOji – kanDa chApu – thyAgarAja (AST)
7) srIpatE – nAgaswarAwaLi – Adi – thyAgarAja
8 ) koluvamaragadA – tODi – Adi – thyAgarAja (ANST)
9) jagadOdhAraNA – kApi – Adi – purandaradAsa
10) sivaperumAn krupai – suruTTi – Adi – pApanAsam sivan
11) shAntAkAram (viruttam) – sindhubhairavi
venkaTAchala nilayam – sindhubhairavi – Adi – purandaradAsa
12) nI nAma rUpa mulaku (mangaLam) – sowrAshTram – Adi – thyAgarAja
(Key: O=raga outline, A=raga alapana, N=neraval, S=kalpana swaram, T=taniavartanam)
Sri Ashok Ramani started his concert with Sri Papanasam Sivan’s beautiful varnam in danyAsi, which I am hearing for the first time. latAngi and tODi alapanas were very well executed by both the vocalist and violinist. After Sri Ashok Ramani sang the yadukulakAmbOji kriti, Sri UKS launched himself into one of the best taniavartanams I have heard for a long time now. Playing a good taniavartanam in kanDa chApu in the kalapramanam at which the song was sung is a very difficult task and Sri UKS simply excelled at that. What naada and what clarity even while playing lightning fast patterns !!!! He played the chatusra and tisra naDais. Sri UKS and Sri Ashok Ramani discussed something on the stage after the tODi alapana got over, the result of which was that Sri Konerirajapuram Varadarajan, who was present in the audience, was called on stage to do konnakkOl for the tODi kriti as well as play the taniavartanam after the kriti along with Sri Srirangam Kannan. The taniavartanam here comprised of chatusra and tisra nadais with Sri UKS joining in the end to do the kuraippu and play the mOrA and kOrvai. This is the first time I am hearing the use of konnakkOl in a vocal concert.
Ramkumar R 
Seems a wonderful kutcheri.I wanted to attend it after seeing the morning newspaper announcement,but couldn’t make it as it got late in college.It has been a long time since I heard Ganamurthe and Koluvamaragade.As for Konnakol,I remember,in June or July 2006,a felication was arranged for Shri TH Subhash Chandran (THSC) at the Music Academy and Shri L. Subramaniam performed a violin kuctheri in which he asked Shri Subhash Chandran to join him for Konnakol.He remarked that he had heard no one performing Konnakol as good as THSC.
Sathej